| Proverbs 31:26-27 – “She opens her mouth with wisdom, and loving instruction is on her tongue. She watches over the ways of her household and does not eat the bread of idleness.” |
Learning is not always done in a formal setting, and children will model our behavior as much or more as our instructions. My mother never slept late, even on weekends or holidays. She cooked three meals each day for our large family, back in the time before microwaves or packaged foods. She had no dishwasher, and drive throughs had not been invented. She was always cooking, cleaning, or doing laundry (and ironing!) our mountains of clothes. She refinished and reupholstered furniture and took excellent care of the few ‘things’ we did own.
I remember on Saturday nights she would make sure each of us children had a bath and our church clothes (many that she had sewn herself) were ready for the next day. After we all went to bed, she would polish our church shoes and sit them out on the kitchen counter to dry. Very little was ever thrown away – she was always looking for ways to reuse or repurpose items for us or for others. She did teach me to sew and bake, hobbies I enjoyed into adulthood. But the biggest lessons I learned from her were about devotion to family, completing a job once you start it, and still finding time to care for others.
Prayer: Lord, thank you for mothers who provide Godly examples for us – hard work, stewardship of the earth, and faithfulness to our families. Help me to be that type of example to my child and grandchild. Amen
– Betty Gossell
